1978-07 July Classic Newsletter

July 1978 Selection of California Wine

JADE J. LOHR N.V.

The J. Lohr wines are made by the Turgeon and Lohr Winery located near downtown San Jose, with its vineyards some distance away at Greenfield, in Monterey County. The winery building formerly housed a keg filling operation for Falstaff Brew­ing and was purchased by its present owners in 1974. The micro-climatic conditions in the Greenfield area are responsible for only about four ton yield of grapes per acre. This is quite low, however, winemaker Peter Stern feels that it is worthwhile because of the high quality of the grapes.

Jade is proprietary named wine, and is a creation of the winemakers blending. The varieties used in the blend are pri­marily Johannisberg Riesling, with some Gewurztraminer; both varieties are well suited for growing to this area.

J. Lohr Jade contains a fair amount of residual sugar, thus making it a slightly sweet wine. It is light and fruity and is at its best served chilled with fresh fruit or dessert or as an aperitif. Enjoy as a summer wine, well chilled.

$3.75/fifth $40.50/case

July 1978 Selection of Imported Wine

RIOJA RED DOMAIN DOMECQ 1973

The Rioja is the most important and the best table wine producing area of Spain. The dis­trict takes its name from the Rio Oja, a small tributary of the Rio Ebro. This area lies near the edge of the Basque country, not far from the western Pyrenees and the French border. It is high cool country and the average altitude of the vineyards is well over 1500 feet. These condit­ions produce wines which tend to be light, dry and rather low in alcohol.

Most of the red grape varieties in the Domecq family vineyards are Spanish varieties. They include the Garnacha, Graciano, Mazuela and Tempranillo. Even though they are not classified as the "noble" varieties they produce some truly excellent wines when judic­iously blended.

This Domecq Domain Rioja is true to type and is a good example of this careful blending. It is light, dry and well balanced. Try it at room temperature with light meats or game.

We have reprints of articles and pamphlets from various sources about building your own wine cellar. These were collected and filed by us for the reference use of our customers.

Using an existing room or building one from scratch is a great family project and a rewarding one, too. Stop in for a chat, the information is free for the asking.

If you wish to buy a ready made wine cellar, we have those too! Our wine shop is the agency for a couple of "ready to move in" wine cellar manufacturers. Literature is avail­able.

CONSIDERING A WINE TASTING PARTY?

Consult us for supplies. We have correct wine glasses for sale or rent, inexpensive champagne buckets as waste receptacles, and a brochure, suitable for customizing your list of wines offered for tasting. It describes the highlights, of how to taste and compare wines and has room for notes.

We have available for seasoned evaluators, blank copies of three styl­es of grading and description charts.

● BLANC DE BLANCS Reserve Cuvee 1973
(Napa Valley Champagne)
The select lot of each vintage aged longer before removal of the yeast sediment. A superior wine, more developed than the regular vintage. Available in limited quantities.
$10.25/fifth $110.70/cs

● BLANC DE BLANCS 1975
(Napa Valley Champagne)
A cuvee of Chardonnay and White Pin­ot; primarily the former. It is a very dry wine, of complex flavor and medium body. It develops greatly with added bottle age. Excellent as an aperitif or with seafood, soups, poultry or saute dishes.
$9.30/fifth $100.00/cs

● BLANC DE NOIRS 1973
(Napa Valley Champagne)
The most traditional of true champ­agne styles; this wine begins with free run juice of the Pinot Noir taken off the skins without color. Chardonnay is later added in the blend. Heavier in body, this is a dry, "rich" champagne. Ages well into a full complex wine.
$11.25/fifth $121.50/cs

● CUVEE DE GAMAY 1973
(Napa Valley Champagne)
Delicate salmon in color, medium bodied, dry and fruity. From the ??ee run of the Napa Gamay, blended with Pinot Noir, this unusual champagne is recommended for aper­itif, with pasta, richer seafood dishes, game or fruit.
$8.75/fifth $94.50/cs

CELLARMASTER
"WINE OF THE MONTH CLUB"
– for a fun way of discovering new wines each month
We select one domestic and one imported wine and feature it in our wine shop.
We send you a bottle of each selection monthly.
We send you a newsletter describing the wine and its background.
We restrict our selections to the popular price range, not to exceed $10.00 for the two bottles of wine each month.
We deliver to the Palos Verdes Area at no charge. We ship statewide at nominal charges of whatever our cost is for such shipping.
If you are new to wines, it is a good way to learn about them.
If you are a seasoned connoisseur, we invite you to test our evaluations and make your recommendations for future selections.
Please send me the domestic and imported selection each month.
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"WINE OF THE MONTH CLUB" CELLARMASTER SELECTIONS
Mail to: Palos Verder Wines & Spirits
77 MALAGA COVE PLAZA PALOS VERDES ESTATES, CALIFORNIA 90274
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Use the form below for ordering any wines or items you wish from this newsletter, or any other wines available.
We deliver in Palos Verdes at no charge ($20 minimum). We ship statewide nominal charges of whatever our cost is for such shipping.
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Mail to: 77 Malaga Cove Plaza Palos Verder Estates, CA 90274

LAST TASTING

The tremendous enthusiasm that was exhibited by our mem­bers at the last Sparkling Wine tasting on June 21, 1978 was greatly appreciated by our honored guest John Wright, President of Domaine Chandon and Robert Gourdin, founder of Les Amis du Vin. The clear winners in the event were the Moet Brut Imperial, vintaged 1971, which everyone agreed exhibited all the character­istics of what a great champ­agne can be and Mr. Wright's own Napa Valley Brut which came up very close to the Moet despite its price tag of $8.50 versus the Moet at $16.95. A clear disappointment was the Bollinger Brut which exhibited a slight oxidization as did the Almaden. However these two did have their supporters among the group which goes to prove that champagne and sparkling wines do have something for everybody.

NEXT MONTH

Steve O'Donnell, winemaker of Callaway Vineyards in Tem­ecula, will be presenting a Sensory Evaluation Lecture on wine tastes. The program will consist of samples of the five basic wine tastes; acid, sweet­ness, sulphur, oxidization and wood. We will sample three ex­amples of each taste, first when the taste is not present, second when the taste is in balance and third when the taste is overpowering.

This will be a unique opp­ortunity to sample the primary components in wine while having them explained by one of Cal­ifornia's master winemakers.